“And yet, while much research has been done on the impact of working in the primary and secondary education sectors, and in particular, the impact of workload on the mental health of teachers in recent years, there has to date been very little focus on how working in the Early Years sector can affect practitioners’ mental health and wellbeing.

“Underfunding, Ofsted inspections, high workload and poor pay are just some of the challenges facing the Early Years workforce today – and while it is, of course, vital to continue campaigning on a sector-wide basis on issues of concern, we at the alliance believe it is equally important that the needs of individual practitioners, and the impact that working conditions in the sector may be having on their mental and emotional wellbeing, aren’t overlooked.

“As such, we hope that this landmark survey will prompt a long overdue discussion on what is a vital issue, and we are encouraging as many practitioners as possible to take part.”

The survey asks practitioners to name sources of stress, whether work has led to the development of health conditions, if they have taken time off because of stress and mental health difficulties and if they have considered leaving the sector because of this.